11 of the best cafes in Auckland

Oct 27

Here’s where to find the best breakfast, lunch and coffee in Auckland.

Auckland is a world-class city when it comes to food.

New Zealand’s largest city is home to excellent restaurants, and a thriving coffee culture and cafe scene.

The classic brunch in Auckland usually consists of eggs, sourdough, and maybe some avocado, accompanied by a flat white.

Auckland is an incredibly diverse city though, so often you’ll find creative spins on the classic eggs bene, with Asian or Mediterranean influences adding creative flavours.

Here’s where locals go for the best cafes in Auckland.

1. Bestie Cafe, Karangahape Road

Bestie Cafe has a prime location in the historic St Kevins Arcade on Karangahape Road.

The view through the tall glass windows is stunning. Grab a table by the glass and you’ll be able to look out at Myers Park and the Sky Tower beyond.

Bestie features an array of cabinet treats, along with a complete brunch and lunch menu, which features creative twists on classic cafe breakfasts.

Creamy mushrooms and lentils, sardines on toast, or chocolate rice pudding — Bestie is a great place to expand your breakfast horizons.

2. Odette’s

Odette’s is a truly beautiful cafe. Located in the City Works Depot in central Auckland, Odette’s has both indoor and outdoor seating, with a sleek Scandinavian style.

The food is just as outstanding as the decor. The menu takes breakfast classics and puts a unique spin on them, for dishes that inspire fanatic loyalty among Aucklanders.

The menu draws on Mediterranean flavours and other global cuisines, while using seasonal and local produce.

Instead of french toast, there’s fried brioche with rhubarb, pomegranate, and crème fraîche. Wild mushrooms are served with black garlic toum and a brown rice crepe, and basic scrambled eggs are jazzed up with herbs, halloumi, broccolini and date chutney.

3. William’s Eatery

William’s Eatery is a family owned eatery in Wynyard Quarter in downtown Auckland.

The cafe serves local and internationally inspired dishes, using seasonal produce from local suppliers. The menu features dishes like a smoked eggplant torta, mortadella fried eggs, and braised butter beans.

The calming, sophisticated interior makes Williams a lovely place to linger over coffee or brunch.

4. Orphan’s Kitchen

Orphan’s Kitchen is a top-notch cafe in Ponsonby.

Located right on Ponsonby Road, Orphan’s Kitchen has a warm, minimalist interior and a menu that highlights fresh, local produce.

Their crumpets are my favourite — the original version has honey from the rooftop, or for a more decadent version try the clotted cream and jam.

They also have a Southland cheese roll on the menu, which is pretty much a New Zealand delicacy.

5. Ozone Coffee, Grey Lynn

Ozone Coffee Roasters is one of the best cafes in Grey Lynn.

As a dedicated coffee roastery, they make a stellar cup of coffee to go with their

The Ozone kitchen is committed to low-waste, local food — they currently use 95% New Zealand products, with less than 5% kitchen waste.

The menu is like a tiki tour around the best produce from each of New Zealand’s regions.

Banana bread is made from bananas from Northland. The smoked salmon on the sourdough crumpet comes from the alpine waters around Lake Pukaki. The omelette is served from mushrooms sourced from Mangawhai.

For excellent food and coffee in a sleek, sunny environment, Ozone is hard to beat.

6. Little Bird Kitchen

The Little Bird Kitchen in Ponsonby is one of the best Auckland cafes for vegans.

All of the food at Little Bird is vegan, showcasing the best of plant-based eating.

You can expect creative dishes like black sesame waffles with mango and lime leaf compote, or a kimchi toastie with vegan cheddar.

Little Bird uses fairtrade, organic Peoples Coffee and serves a range of cold-pressed juices, and tumeric or reishi lattes alongside the food.

7. Crave

Crave is a Morningside cafe and social enterprise that gives all profits back to the community.

The large, spacious cafe serves a menu of creative breakfast and lunch dishes — my favourite is the funghi medley on crispy potato hash.

For drinks, you can choose from Common Good coffee, raw smoothies, or tumeric or matcha lattes.

8. Kind Cafe

KIND is a mostly vegan cafe in Morningside.

The cafe specialises in healthy food options that are kind to both people and the earth.

KIND’s menu features things like banoffee plant-based pancakes, and a crispy tofu bao bun.

As well as being an awesome cafe, KIND is a social enterprise established and run by the collective behind Crave. The goal of this social enterprise is to make Morningside a more sustainable community.

9. Duo Eatery, Birkenhead

Since opening in 2022, Duo Eatery in Birkenhead has become one of the most popular cafes on the North Shore.

The food is delightfully decadent.

Instead of plain french toast, there’s bruleed custard soaked brioche with poached pair and vanilla mascarpone. Morning toast is taken to the next level with market fish tartare with horseradish mayo on grilled sourdough. Even the housemade granola has lashings of stewed rhubarb with whipped coconut yoghurt.

These exceptional brunch offerings make Duo a must-visit cafe in Auckland.

10. Burnt Butter

Burnt Butter Diner is a small neighbourhood cafe in Avondale with a friendly, vintage vibe.

Burnt Butter Diner is unique in Auckland in that there’s no espresso machine here — there’s only filter coffee available.

As a flat white addict, even I’m willing to overlook this for the sake of their food, though.

Burnt Butter’s philosophy is to do simple food well.

11. Hare and the turtle

This tiny little cafe in New Windsor does some of the most epic toasted sandwiches in the whole of Auckland.

Hare and the Turtle is one of the best brunch spots if you’re craving something deliciously greasy but full of flavour — a hangover cure or just a treat on a gloomy day.

The eggplant parm is out of this world.

It is a small space so you might have to grab your toastie to go, but still worth it — absolutely delicious brunch.

Thanks for reading this far! I hope you found a new cafe to try in Auckland. If you like food you might also want to check out this list of top Auckland bakeries before you go.

And if you’re up for a ferry ride, you might want to take a peek at the best cafes and restaurants on Waiheke Island.